“MOLL FLANDERS” by DANIEL DEFOE 1722

PICARESQUE NOVEL: adventure of villain

Background info:
17th-Century England and America
Moll Flanders takes place in England (mostly London) and America (mostly Virginia) in the
second half of the 17th century. At the time London was a center of trade and industry,
stimulating growing capitalism (an economic system characterized by private industry)
and with it the power of the emerging bourgeoisie, or middle class. London was booming,
its population growing to 630,000 by 1715, an enormous number at the time. In fact, other
than Paris, London was the largest European city.
However, trade—and hence economic rise—remained primarily the privilege of men, since
women did not have the legal rights in most cases to conduct business, a fact that informs
much of Moll's predicament throughout the novel. Born out of wedlock to a woman convicted
of a crime, Moll represents a 17th-century lower-class woman. Lacking financial
independence, these women were often forced to attach themselves to men for economic
survival.
The fast growth of the city brought with it the growth of crime. City streets were
frequented by pickpockets, while country roads were often targeted by highwaymen, who
forced their victims at gunpoint to hand over valuables. The absence of an organized police
force meant it was up to the victim to bring the case to the constable—usually a wealthy, and
sometimes corrupt, parish holder—and the courts. Hence, crime often paid—that is, until a
criminal was caught and tried. Punishment was harsh: even non-violent crime was often
punished by death, or transportation to the colonies.
Colonization—the practice of acquiring foreign lands, populating the lands with settlers, and
exploiting native people and resources for the economic gain of the mother country—began
in the late 16th century and continued into the 20th century, affecting many regions in
the world, America among them. In the late 17th century the colonies were a place for
adventurers, free-thinking entrepreneurs, religious outcasts, and criminals. In the novel,
Moll Flanders travels to Virginia twice, first as the wife of a prosperous landowner, and
second as a criminal who serves time as an indentured servant in the colonies in lieu of a
death sentence.

The Role of Women in 17th-Century England

Although published in 1722, Defoe's Moll Flanders takes place in the 17th century. England
in this era was a class-based society, meaning upward social mobility through education
or hard work was difficult. It was also a patriarchal society dominated by men. As a
result, women were mostly legally dependent on the men in their lives—their fathers,
brothers, or husbands. Women were bound by coverture, which meant that after
marriage a woman gave up all her property and legal rights—formerly held by her
father or brother—to her husband, essentially becoming one with him in a legal sense.
This meant economic stability, but also complete dependence. Higher education was
available only to men, and most professions were restricted to men. Consequently,
women had to look toward marriage as a means of economic stability and survival.
In the 18th century some boarding schools for women were established. However, these
schools were mostly meant for the upper classes and taught writing, music, and
sometimes foreign languages, rather than subjects that would enable students to earn an
independent living. Women in this era were supposed to run the household. For upper-
and middle-class women, this meant handling servants. For lower-class women, this
meant becoming a servant—a fate Moll Flanders desperately wants to avoid. Instead,
she wants to be a gentlewoman—in other words, an independent woman. However, life
as an independent (i.e., unmarried) woman was extraordinarily difficult, as the only
respectable professions other than servant were seamstress, washerwoman, or midwife.
Intent on avoiding this fate all her life, Moll continually strives to attach herself to men
of means. While she describes herself as a whore, the term cannot be confused with its
modern interpretation of a prostitute. Instead, Moll was a kept woman, engaging in
sexual relations with men outside marriage to guarantee her financial security.
Pregnancy and childbirth—both constant companions in a woman's life at the time—
carried extraordinary hazards. Many women died in childbirth, and many infants were
stillborn or died in infancy. Readers may find Moll's seemingly unemotional and callous
attitude towards her children offensive—she readily abandons every one of them, leaving
them to be raised by the father's family and servants, or even strangers. However, as a single
woman, she had no means to support them. In the harsh context of economic insecurity, close
familial relationships are viewed as a luxury of the rich.

Literary Traditions
Defoe has often been called the father of the novel, mostly for his literary contributions
Robinson Crusoe, published in 1719, and Moll Flanders, published in 1722. When in the
Author's Preface Defoe distinguishes Moll Flanders from "novels and romances," and calls it
instead a "private history," he stresses the truth-value that has since become a defining
characteristic of realistic fiction. At the time, novels were adventure stories set in faraway
lands, recounting tall tales such as Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels, published in 1726, only
four years after Moll Flanders. As a fictional memoir, Moll Flanders draws on the genre of
the confessional, telling the often-scandalous stories of real-life criminals confessing
their crimes. Remorse, as well as an attempt at justification, characterized many of these
stories. Similarly, Moll repeatedly claims repentance and continually justifies her actions
by economic necessity.
At the same time, the novel draws on the tradition of the picaresque(is a genre of prose
fiction. It depicts the adventures of a roguish, but "appealing hero", usually of low social
class, who lives by his wits in a corrupt society. Picaresque novels typically adopt a
realistic style. There are often some elements of comedy and satire)., made famous by
Miguel Cervantes' Don Quixote, published in 1605 and 1615, and Hans Jacob Christoph von
Grimmelshausen's Simplicissimus, published in 1669. A story of an unlikely hero, usually of
humble birth, the picaresque follows an outsider as he drifts from milieu to milieu in an effort
to fit into a society that rejects him. Changing and often questionable moral convictions
come
with the territory, as the hero is forced to adapt to constantly evolving circumstances to
survive. Born on the fringes of respectable society in Newgate prison and growing up a
virtual orphan, Moll goes through repeated ups and downs as she fights for economic
survival, claiming that her opportunism, her repeated marriages and affairs, and her
criminal activities are justified by the disadvantaged position of unmarried women at
the time.
The growing literacy rate of the middle class in the 18th century created a greater need for
reading materials that did not exclusively deal with the life of the aristocracy or upper classes,
explaining the popularity of realistic novels such as Moll Flanders. Writing novels became a
potentially lucrative profession in this era.
Characters:
Moll Flanders: Moll's life is a rags-to-riches story, with many detours in between. She is a
beautiful and smart woman who quickly learns to use her allure over men to her advantage.
Moll attaches monetary value to relationships, dismisses the notions of emotional
attachment, dependability, and fidelity, and instead uses the men in her life for social
advancement and financial gain. Claiming to be the victim of circumstance—as a
woman of low birth without a support system, she has few options for social
advancement—Moll readily excuses her questionable behavior. Since nothing is scarier
than poverty, everything becomes an acceptable means to achieve economic stability,
even immoral and criminal activity. While she constantly professes to regret her wicked
ways, she does not try to mend them—until the end, that is, when she is too old and wealthy
to worry about her next step.
The midwife: The professional services the midwife offers—assistance with pregnancy,
childbirth and abortion—run the gamut of typical fates endured by unmarried women
of the lower class in 17th- and 18th-century England. The midwife is a source of
protection, good advice, and practical support for many fallen girls. She assists a
pregnant Moll when her husband abandons her, helps Moll navigate a life of crime
when she is broke and too old to attract another husband, and sticks by Moll when she
ends up in prison. The midwife never passes judgment and asks for nothing in return.
Although her help is rather unorthodox—she teaches Moll to become a world-class thief—the
midwife wants only the best and provides for Moll as best she can. She is loyal and devoted,
and it is no surprise Moll comes to think of her as the mother she never had.
Jemy: Jemy is the only husband Moll claims to love. He seems to be a great catch—
handsome, smart, and rich. However, he turns out to be a better match for Moll than she
bargained for. He is a fortune hunter just like her, a clever crook who changes his
identity depending on the situation. Neither has any money—the grand prize they are both
after—and hence he leaves her, despite their obvious attraction to each other. Like Moll, Jemy
turns to crime to make ends meet, ends up in Newgate prison facing a harsh sentence, yet
always lands on his feet. The two seem like a perfect pair, and so it is no surprise they end up
together in the end.
Summary:
  Moll is born out of wedlock in Newgate prison..
 At age three, Moll begins to live with a nurse.
 Moll moves in with a wealthy family.
 Moll sleeps with the older son, but marries the younger son.
 Moll marries a draper and they live beyond their means.
 Moll moves to Virginia with her third husband.
 Moll becomes the lover of a married man, who leaves her.
 Moll marries Jemy, who leaves her pregnant.
 Moll lives with a midwife until the child is born.
 Moll marries a banker, but he dies after losing his money.
 Moll becomes a master criminal.
 Moll is caught and sent to die in Newgate prison.
 Moll and Jemy are deported to Virginia.
 Moll reunites with her son.
Childhood
Moll Flanders is born out of wedlock to a woman imprisoned at Newgate prison in London,
England, her death sentence temporarily suspended due to her pregnancy. Once Moll is born,
her mother's death sentence is reduced to time as an indentured servant. Moll stays with
gypsies until age three, when she runs away and is picked up and raised by the town nurse and
teacher. Moll's outspoken desire to be a financially independent gentlewoman rather than a
servant attracts the attention of a wealthy family in town, who take her in after the nurse's
death. Moll grows up with her "adopted" sisters, receiving the same education in reading,
writing, music, and foreign language that prepares her for a life of leisure fit for an upper-
class woman.

First Lover and Marriage

Moll's older adopted brother shamelessly flirts with Moll, as she is smart, educated, well-
behaved, and beautiful. She falls in love, eventually caves to his promise of marriage, and
becomes his secret mistress before he fulfills his promise. His younger brother also falls in
love with her and asks her to marry him. She confronts her lover and realizes he will never
marry her. Realizing she is one brother's whore, she has no choice but to accept the younger
brother's marriage proposal to keep up the appearance of an honorable woman. When her
husband dies five years later, she leaves her two children with her husband's parents and
leaves because her former lover has also married.

Second Marriage
With a modest sum of money to her name—in part inherited from her husband, in part saved
up from the money she received from her lover—Moll attracts the attention of a draper or
dealer of cloth. They marry and enjoy a lavish lifestyle beyond their means. Soon her husband
has to leave the country to escape his creditors. Moll, too, needs to go underground and takes
on a new name—Mrs. Flanders.
An Incestuous Relationship
Once again in dire need of economic security, and fully aware that a woman's financial
standing is at least as important as her beauty—if not more so—in attracting a suitable suitor,
Moll lets others believe she is a lady of fortune. A plantation owner from Virginia shows
interest, and Moll tricks him into promising he will marry her regardless of her background.
He does, but when he finds out Moll has no means of her own, he asks her to come to
Virginia to live with him and his mother. Moll reluctantly follows. They live on the plantation
for several years, during which she has three children but only one son survives. In a
conversation with her mother-in-law, Moll realizes the woman is actually her birth mother,
which means Moll unwittingly married her half-brother. She reveals herself to her mother but
not to her husband. Unable to continue the incestuous relationship, Moll leaves Virginia under
a pretense and returns to England.

A Kept Woman
Once again in search of economic security, Moll goes to Bath and becomes the mistress of a
rich married man. Living as a kept woman, she bears him a child. When in a near-death
experience her lover finds God, his conscience no longer allows for a mistress, and he ends
their relationship. Leaving her child behind to be cared for by her former lover, she leaves
Bath and goes to the country.

True Love
Alone again, Moll falls in love with James—whom she affectionately calls "Jemy"—in
Lancashire, and they get married. Soon they both realize they conned each other and that they
are both poor. Although they love each other and seem to be a good match, Jemy leaves her.
Once again alone, and this time pregnant from a man who did not stick around long enough to
help care for the child, Moll returns to London to live with a governess and midwife who
caters to unmarried women in precisely Moll's predicament. She gives birth to another boy
and gives him up to a woman who will raise him in the country.

The Banker
Moll's next husband is a banker who takes care of her finances, but who knows nothing about
her past and present romances, or children. The two live a quiet and contented life for several
years, until a business deal gone bad ruins them financially. Humiliated by the business
failure, her husband does not survive, and Moll finds herself alone and penniless yet again.

A Life of Crime
Moll returns to the midwife. Under her guidance, Moll begins living as a thief. Although she
continuously claims to regret her life of crime, Moll seems to enjoy it greatly, managing to
make a name for herself as a gifted criminal. After years of many close calls, Moll is caught
and sent to Newgate prison to await her trial—the very prison in which she was born. The
horrendous conditions of prison life harden Moll's resolve, until a benevolent minister helps
her confess her crimes and repent of her sins. He also manages to change her death sentence
to transportation to America. Moll follows her mother's footsteps.

Reunions
Before she leaves, Moll realizes her husband Jemy is at Newgate as well. She convinces him
to seek transportation, and they both sail to Virginia, where the money she made as a criminal
pays for their freedom. Moll seeks out her relatives and learns several things—her mother
passed away and left her an estate, her brother-husband is near blind, and her son is tending
the plantation. She writes a letter to her husband, which is intercepted by her son. He
immediately visits her in a joyful reunion. He ensures she will receive yearly earnings from
her mother's estate. When her brother-husband passes away, she finally tells Jemy about the
true nature of her relationship to her brother-husband and introduces him to her son, finally
putting an end to her web of lies and deceit. Jemy and Moll return to England, where they live
out their lives in financial security.
PAMELA BY SAMUEL RICHARDSON 1740
EPISTOLARY NOVEL
Summary:
Pamela Andrews is a lively, clever, pretty, and virtuous servant-girl, age 15, in the county of
Bedfordshire in England. For the past three years, she has served as waiting-maid to the
kindly Lady B., who unfortunately has just died. Lady B.’s son, the twenty-something
Squire B., becomes Master of the country household. After a period of mourning in which
he decorously restrains himself from making any advances on his late mother’s favorite, Mr.
B. begins flirting with Pamela incessantly. In letters to her parents, who are destitute
through no fault of their own, Pamela reports her Master’s attempts and vows that she
will suffer any injury or social penalty rather than sacrifice her chastity. Her parents
encourage this devotion to her virtue and advise her to leave Mr. B.’s employment and
return to home and poverty if ever Mr. B. makes a physical attempt on her.
The attempt comes, sooner rather than later, and Pamela resists it vigorously. Disconcerted
but only temporarily deterred, Mr. B. tries to bribe Pamela to keep quiet about the
incident; she relates it, however, to her parents and to the motherly housekeeper, Mrs.
Jervis. Mr. B. begins to make noise about Pamela’s gossiping about him in her letters
home, prompting Pamela to suspect him of stealing her mail. Further offenses ensue,
including an incident in which Mr. B., hiding in a closet, spies on Pamela as she undresses
at night and then rushes out to have his way with her. Pamela, however, displays a marked
tendency to fall into a swoon whenever her Master approaches her with lewd intentions, and
this peculiarity has the convenient effect of diminishing the Squire’s libido.
In spite of Mr. B.’s continued harassment, Pamela does not manage to make the departure that
she so frequently threatens. Various impediments, among them her obligation to finish
embroidering one of Mr. B.’s waistcoats, prevent her return to her parents. Finally, she
resolves to go and, having resisted a final effort of Mr. B. to tempt her with money for
her parents and marriage to a clergyman, packs her bags to leave. Unfortunately, her
driver is the coachman from Mr. B.’s estate in Lincolnshire, and her destination turns
out not to be the one she intended.
Mr. B., who has intercepted and read all of the correspondence between Pamela and her
parents, writes to Mr. and Mrs. Andrews with a consoling but phony explanation for her
failing to appear in their village as planned. Mr. Andrews sees through the ruse and
approaches the Bedfordshire estate, bewailing the disappearance of his daughter, but to
no avail. Meanwhile, Pamela has arrived in Lincolnshire, where the crude and malignant
housekeeper Mrs. Jewkes watches her every move.
Pamela continues writing letters while in captivity, but as she does not know when she will be
able to send them, she dispenses with salutations and signatures, so that they run together into
one continuous journal. She begins plotting her escape immediately, and she soon settles on
the clergyman Mr. Williams as her only likely ally. Mr. Williams does indeed turn out to be a
willing helper, though his competence remains in question. They arrange a system of secret
correspondence whereby they will hide their notes to each other beside a sunflower in the
garden.
Mr. Williams tries and fails to enlist support for Pamela among the local gentry, who all
suspect his and Pamela’s motives. The clergyman eventually suggests that he and
Pamela get married, whereupon the Squire would no longer have any authority to
detain her. Pamela declines this offer, only to find soon after that Mr. B. has written to
the clergyman making the same suggestion. Pamela again rejects the idea.
When a group of thieves attacks Mr. Williams on the road and searches his pockets for
papers, Pamela becomes concerned that Mr. B. sent them to steal her letters, which the
clergyman was carrying. The incident prompts her to make her first escape attempt, but her
own nerves prevent her even from making it across the garden. Soon a further impediment
appears in the person of Monsieur Colbrand, a hideous Swiss man whom Mr. B. has sent to
guard Pamela.
Mr. B., suspecting Mr. Williams of colluding with Pamela, sends him to prison for debt.
Pamela concludes that she has run out of options and makes a desperate escape attempt in the
middle of the night. The attempt fails when a crumbling wall causes injury to her head and
legs. Despairing, Pamela considers drowning herself in the garden pond, but a sudden renewal
of her commitment to life and virtue, which she credits to a divine intervention, saves her. In
the morning, the other servants find her lying wounded in an outhouse, and her captivity
continues as before.
A few days later Mr. B. arrives in Lincolnshire. He serves Pamela with a set of terms on
which he proposes to make her his mistress, but she refuses them scornfully. Changing
his strategy, Mr. B. gets close to Pamela at night by impersonating a drunken
maidservant. Pamela’s swooning fits come to her aid again, and after this episode, Mr.
B. shows signs of being genuinely chastened. He again attempts to woo her but does not
employ force. Then, in a heart-to-heart, he explains to her that he has come to admire her
character and in fact deeply loves her, but his aversion to marriage prevents making an
honest proposal. Pamela feels moved by this confession and hopes fervently that it is
sincere.
Mr. B. leaves the Lincolnshire estate for a few days, during which interval Pamela receives
from a gypsy fortune-teller a note warning her of Mr. B.’s plans for entrapping her in a sham-
marriage. This note causes Pamela to react strongly against Mr. B. and against her own
softening feelings for him. When he returns from his trip he receives from Mrs. Jewkes a set
of Pamela’s recent writings; inferring that her “scribbling” has proceeded unabated in
Lincolnshire, he demands to see the rest of her literary output, which Pamela reluctantly
hands over. His reading of these papers only increases his admiration of her character and
virtue. He tells her how deeply the writings have moved him and expresses his regret
over his rough usage of her, promising to make amends. When Pamela, still fearing the
sham-marriage, nevertheless repeats her request to return to her parents, Mr. B. is hurt
and finally, in anger, allows her to leave.
Pamela departs the Lincolnshire estate, though not in so happy a mood as she had expected.
During a stopover at a country inn, she receives another letter from Mr. B. in which he
avows that further reading in her papers prompts him to request her return to
Lincolnshire. Pamela, having reconsidering, decides to trust him and complies. Upon
her return, they discuss the likely social fallout from a marriage between a squire and a
serving-maid; undeterred, they enter on their engagement. Pamela then tells Mr. B. the
story of the gypsy fortune-teller, and he admits to having considered perpetrating a sham-
marriage but says that he thought the better of it.
The neighboring gentry, who once refused to aid Pamela’s escape, now come to dinner and
inspect Mr. B.’s betrothed. Pamela impresses everyone with her beauty and comparative
refinement. On the same day, Mr. Andrews arrives, expecting from a letter he received
that he would find his daughter a fully corrupted mistress of the Squire. An ecstatic
reunion ensues, of which all the dinner guests are eager witnesses. Over the next few
days, there are a series of chariot rides, several arguments over the wedding date, and
reconciliation between Mr. B. and Mr. Williams, whom he has liberated from debtors’
prison.
On a Thursday, two weeks after the start of the engagement, Pamela and Mr. B. are married in
the family chapel. Mr. Williams presides over the ceremony and Mrs. Jewkes attends the
bride. The newlyweds originally plan to keep their marriage a secret from the neighbors for
the time being, but after several days Mrs. Jewkes lets the news slip “accidentally” while
serving drinks before a dinner.
That same evening, Mr. B. goes to attend a dying acquaintance. By the next morning, he has
not returned, so Pamela is alone when his sister, Lady Davers, arrives to browbeat the Squire
and his beloved, whom she does not know to be married. Lady Davers badgers and insults
Pamela at some length, detaining her against her will with the help of a nephew and a
waiting-maid. Finally, Pamela escapes through a window and, with the help of her new
allies Mrs. Jewkes and Monsieur Colbrand, makes it to the home of Sir Simon
Darnford, where Mr. B. and the neighbors are expecting her. There she regales the
company with the tale of her experience with Lady Davers.
The next morning, Lady Davers intrudes on the newlyweds in their bedroom, and a conflict
ensues between the brother and sister, where the sister refers to a duel that Mr. B. fought in
Italy. Lady Davers walks off in a huff, but a tentative reconciliation occurs over dinner. After
dinner, however, Lady Davers refers to a woman named Sally Godfrey, prompting Mr. B. to
explain a few things to Pamela. He gives the extenuating back-story on the Italian duel and
confesses to a liaison with Sally, a young woman he met during his college years. He is
furious at having been forced into these confessions before he was ready to make them, and
Lady Davers suddenly regrets having antagonized him so far. She and Pamela join forces to
calm the Squire and effect a reconciliation, to which he eventually agrees. Later, reflecting on
his fit of temper, Mr. B. explains to Pamela all about the upper-class temperament and marital
dynamics, delivering a lecture from which she derives, rather sardonically, a set of rules for
married life.The next morning, Pamela visits Lady Davers in her room, and they chat
amicably about Mr. B.’s character. Pamela promises to grant her new sister-in-law’s request
to see all her writings.
A few days later, Pamela and Mr. B. return to the Bedfordshire estate, where they receive a
rapturous welcome from the servants. Mr. B. arranges to set up Pamela’s father as the
manager of his estate in Kent. Later they go shopping for clothes and entertain the local
gentry, who are uniformly impressed with Pamela.
Eventually Mr. B. takes Pamela to meet Miss Goodwin, a little girl at a local boarding school,
who Pamela rightly concludes is his daughter by Sally Godfrey. Pamela is delighted with the
child and requests, though in vain, to take her in as part of the Bedfordshire household. Mr. B.
fills out the story of Sally Godfrey, detailing the circumstances of their affair and her eventual
flight to Jamaica, where she is now happily married.
On their second Sunday in Bedfordshire, Pamela and Mr. B. attend church twice, with Pamela
appearing in a spectacular white-and-gold dress. All the neighbors are appropriately stunned,
and the local poor gather to receive alms from the new Lady Bountiful. A few days later,
Pamela and Mr. B. walk together in the garden, are caught in a shower, and shelter in the
summerhouse. There he explains the provisions he has recently made for her in his will. Near
the end of the week, the newlyweds host another dinner for the neighbors; it is an occasion for
Pamela to reflect piously on the goodness of providence and to plan for future good works.
In a conclusion, the “Editor” of Pamela’s letters reveals that Pamela’s later life continues to
be a happy one: she receives semiannual visits from her parents and bears several children.
She remains popular among the local gentry and nobility, and even Lady Davers continues on
good terms with the Squire and his wife. Pamela succeeds in establishing the moral character
of Miss Goodwin, who does not repeat her mother’s mistakes.
Character List:
Pamela: A lively, pretty, and courageous maid-servant, age 15, who is subject to the sexual
advances of her new Master, Mr. B., following the death of his mother, Lady B. She is a
devoted daughter to her impoverished parents, Mr. and Mrs. Andrews, to whom she writes a
prodigious number of letters and whom she credits with the moral formation that prompts her
to defend her purity at all costs. Pamela resists Mr. B. through the long weeks of his
aggression toward her, capitulating neither to his assaults nor to his later tenderness. Though
it takes a while for her to admit it, Pamela is attracted to Mr. B. from the first, and gradually
she comes to love him. They marry about halfway through the novel, and afterward Pamela’s
sweetness and equipoise aid her in securing the goodwill of her new husband’s highborn
friends.
Mr. B.: A country squire, 25 or 26 years of age, with properties in Bedfordshire,
Lincolnshire, Kent, and London. He is Pamela’s employer, pursuer, and eventual husband.
Richardson has censored Mr. B.’s name in order to protect the pretense of non-fiction, but
scholars have conjectured based on manuscripts that the novelist had “Brandon” in mind. Mr.
B. has rakish tendencies, and he attempts to compel Pamela’s reciprocation of his sexual
attentions, even to the point of imprisoning her in his Lincolnshire estate. His fundamental
decency prevents him from consummating any of his assaults on her, however, and under her
influence he reforms in the middle of the novel.
Lady Davers: The married elder sister of Mr. B. to whom the Squire’s Bedfordshire servants
apply when trying to enlist some aid for Pamela. She objects strenuously to the union of her
brother with their mother’s waiting-maid, subjecting Pamela to a harrowing afternoon of
insults and bullying, but eventually comes to accept and value her new sister-in-law. She once
cleaned up after her brother’s affair with Sally Godfrey. Lady Davers is subject to drastic
changes in mood, given to alternate between imperious and abject humors, but she is, like her
brother, basically decent.
Lady B.: Pamela’s original employer, the mother of Mr. B. and Lady Davers. Lady B. was
morally upright and kind to Pamela, educating her and contributing to the formation of her
virtuous character. On her deathbed, she told her son to look after all the Bedfordshire
servants, especially Pamela.
Mrs. Jewkes: The housekeeper at Mr. B.’s Lincolnshire estate and Pamela’s primary warder
during the period of her captivity. Pamela represents her as a brazen villain, physically
hideous and sexually ambiguous, though the hyperbolic attributions of depravity may be
Pamela’s way of deflecting blame from Mr. B., about whom her feelings are more conflicted.
Mrs. Jewkes is devoted to her Master, to a fault: she is as ready to commit a wrong in his
service, not excluding assisting in an attempted rape of Pamela, as she is to wait loyally on
that same Pamela once Mr. B. has decided to elevate and marry her.
Mrs. Jervis: The elderly housekeeper of Mr. B.’s Bedfordshire estate, one of the virtuous
servants who applies to Lady Davers on behalf of Pamela. She has a genteel background and
is an able manager, presumably the linchpin of the well-ordered Bedfordshire household.
Despite her good nature and her motherly concern for Pamela, however, she is nearly useless
in defending her young friend from their Master’s lecherous advances.
Mr. John Andrews: Pamela’s father and her chief correspondent. He is virtuous and literate
like his daughter, formerly the master of a school, though his fortunes have since declined and
he is now an agricultural laborer. He had two sons, now dead, who pauperized him before
dying. Pamela credits both her parents with forming her character by educating her in virtue
and giving her an example of honest, cheerful poverty.
Mrs. Elizabeth Andrews: Pamela’s mother, who has no independent presence in the novel.
Mr. Williams: The curate (junior pastor) of Mr. B.’s parish in Lincolnshire. Pamela engages
his assistance in her efforts to escape her captivity, and she finds him dutiful but ineffectual;
he makes an unsuccessful bid to become Pamela’s husband, and his efforts on her behalf
come decisively to naught when Mr. B. sends him to debtor’s prison. Overall, he is
meritorious but scarcely appealing, and he suffers from his position as the suitor whom no one
takes seriously. Mr. B.’s drawn-out preoccupation with his “rival” Williams only serves to
keep the latter’s risibility in view.
Monsieur Colbrand: The monstrous Swiss man whom Mr. B. sends to Lincolnshire to keep
watch over Pamela. Like Mrs. Jewkes, he becomes Pamela’s ally after the Squire’s
reformation.
Jackey: Lady Davers’s nephew, who accompanies her to Mr. B.’s estate in Lincolnshire and
aids her in browbeating Pamela. He exemplifies what Richardson sees as the aristocratic
impulse toward sexual exploitation of social inferiors, though he is quicker than his aunt in
perceiving Pamela’s innate respectability.
Beck Worden: Lady Davers’s waiting-maid, who attends her at Mr. B.’s estate in Lincolnshire
and aids in the persecution of the newly married Pamela.
John Arnold: A footman at the Bedfordshire estate. In the early stages of the novel he delivers
Pamela’s letters to and from her parents, and Pamela appreciates his cheerfulness is
performing this service. After her abduction, however, he sends her a note confessing that he
has allowed Mr. B. to read all of the correspondence between Pamela and her parents. He has
been torn between his duty to Mr. B. and the promptings of his conscience, and the result is
that he comes into conflict with both Pamela and Mr. B. The Squire dismisses him, but after
the marriage, Pamela has him reinstated.
Mr. Longman: The steward at the Bedfordshire estate, one of the virtuous servants who
applies to Lady Davers on behalf of Pamela. He admires Pamela and supplies her with the
abundant writing materials that allow her to continue her journal during her captivity in
Lincolnshire.
Mr. Jonathan: The butler at the Bedfordshire estate, one of the virtuous servants who applies
to Lady Davers on behalf of Pamela.
Nan (or Ann): A servant-girl at the Lincolnshire estate. Mrs. Jewkes gets her drunk and Mr.
B. impersonates her on the night of his last attempt on Pamela’s virtue.
Sally Godfrey: Mr. B.’s mistress from his college days. She bore him a child, the future Miss
Goodwin, and then fled to Jamaica, where she is now happily married.
Miss Goodwin: Mr. B.’s illegitimate daughter by Sally Godfrey. She lives at a boarding
school in Bedfordshire and does not know who her parents are; she addresses Mr. B. as her
“uncle.”
Sir Simon Darnford: A noble neighbor of Mr. B. in Lincolnshire. He refuses to help Pamela
when Mr. Williams applies to him but comes to admire her after her elevation by Mr. B. He is
given to dirty jokes.
Lady Darnford: The wife of Sir Simon Darnford.
Miss Darnford (the elder): The first daughter of Sir Simon and Lady Darnford. She once had
hopes of marrying Mr. B., but she accepts Pamela’s triumph sportingly.
Miss Darnford (the younger):The second daughter of Sir Simon and Lady Darnford. She joins
her sister in demanding a ball to commemorate the nuptials of Pamela and Mr. B.
Mr. Peters: The vicar of Mr. B.’s parish in Lincolnshire. He refuses to help Pamela when Mr.
Williams applies to him but eventually gives Pamela away at her wedding.
Themes:
The Nature of Virtue: Richardson’s novel has often given the impression of defining
“virtue” too narrowly and negatively, as the physical condition of virginity before marriage.
The novel’s conception of virtue is actually more capacious than its detractors have allowed,
however. To begin with, Pamela makes a sensible distinction between losing her virginity
involuntarily and acquiescing in a seduction. Only the latter would be a transgression against
sexual virtue. Moreover, almost the entire second half of the novel is taken up with the
explication and praise of Pamela’s positive qualities of generosity and benevolence. Mr. B.
values these qualities, and they have brought him to propose marriage: reading her journal, he
has discovered her genuine goodwill toward him, particularly in her rejoicing over his escape
from death by drowning. As a result, Pamela's active goodness merits the “reward” of a happy
marriage as much as her defense of her virginity.

The Integrity of the Individual: Richardson’s fiction commonly portrays individuals

struggling to balance incompatible demands on their integrity: Pamela, for instance, must
either compromise her own sense of right or offend her Master, who deserves her obedience
except insofar as he makes illicit demands on her. This highly conscientious servant and
Christian must work scrupulously to defy her Master’s will only to the degree that it is
necessary to preserve her virtue; to do any less would be irreligious, while to do any more
would be contumacious, and the successful balance of these conflicting claims represents the
greatest expression of Pamela’s personal integrity. Meanwhile, those modern readers who
dismiss Pamela’s defense of her virtue as fatally old-fashioned might consider the issue from
the standpoint of the individual’s right to self-determination. Pamela has a right to stand on
her own principles, whatever they are, so that as so often in English literature, physical
virginity stands in for individual morality and belief: no one, Squire or King, has the right to
expect another person to violate the standards of her own conscience.

Class Politics: One of the great social facts of Richardson’s day was the intermingling of
the aspirant middle class with the gentry and aristocracy. The eighteenth century was a
golden age of social climbing and thereby of satire (primarily in poetry), but Richardson
was the first novelist to turn his serious regard on class difference and class tension.
Pamela’s class status is ambiguous at the start of the novel. She is on good terms with
the other Bedfordshire servants, and the pleasure she takes in their respect for her
shows that she does not consider herself above them ; her position as a lady’s maid,
however, has led to her acquiring refinements of education and manner that unfit her for the
work of common servants: when she attempts to scour a plate, her soft hand develops a
blister. Moreover, Richardson does some fudging with respect to her origins when he
specifies that her father is an educated man who was not always a peasant but once ran a
school.If this hedging suggests latent class snobbery on Richardson’s part, however, the
novelist does not fail to insist that those who receive privileges under the system bear
responsibilities also, and correspondingly those on the lower rungs of the ladder are entitled to
claim rights of their superiors. Thus, in the early part of the novel, Pamela emphasizes that
Mr. B., in harassing her, violates his duty to protect the social inferiors under his care; after
his reformation in the middle of the novel, she repeatedly lauds the “Godlike Power" of doing
good that is the special pleasure and burden of the wealthy. Whether Richardson’s stress on
the reciprocal obligations that characterize the harmonious social order expresses genuine
concern for the working class, or whether it is simply an insidious justification of an
inequitable power structure, is a matter for individual readers to decide.

Sexual Politics: Sexual inequality was a common theme of eighteenth-century social

commentators and political philosophers: certain religious groups were agitating for universal
suffrage, John Locke argued for universal education, and the feminist Mary Astell decried the
inequities of the marital state. Though Richardson’s decision to have Pamela fall in love with
her would-be rapist has rankled many advocates of women’s rights in recent years, he remains
in some senses a feminist writer due to his sympathetic interest in the hopes and concerns of
women. He allows Pamela to comment acerbically on the hoary theme of the sexual double
standard: “those Things don’t disgrace Men, that ruin poor Women, as the World goes.” In
addition, Sally Godfrey demonstrates the truth of this remark by going to great lengths (and a
long distance) to avoid ruination after her connection with Mr. B., who comes through the
episode comparatively unscathed.Not only as regards extramarital activities but also as
regards marriage itself, eighteenth-century society stacked the deck against women: a wife
had no legal existence apart from her husband, and as Jocelyn Harris notes, Pamela in
marrying Mr. B. commits herself irrevocably to a man whom she hardly knows and who has
not been notable for either his placid temper or his steadfast monogamy; Pamela’s private
sarcasms after her marriage, then, register subtly Richardson’s appropriate misgivings about
matrimony as a reward for virtue. Perhaps above all, however, Richardson’s sympathy for the
feminine view of things emerges in his presentation of certain contrasts between the feminine
and masculine psyches. Pamela’s psychological subtlety counters Mr. B.’s simplicity, her
emotional refinement counters his crudity, and her perceptiveness defeats his callousness,
with the result that Mr. B. must give up his masculine, aggressive persona and embrace
instead the civilizing feminine values of his new wife.

Psychology and the Self: In composing Pamela, Richardson wanted to explore human
psychology in ways that no other writer had. His innovative narrative method, in which
Pamela records her thoughts as they occur to her and soon after the events that have inspired
them, he called “writing to the moment”; his goal was to convey “those lively and delicate
Impressions, which Things Present are known to make upon the Minds of those affected by
them,” on the theory that “in the Study of human Nature the Knowledge of those
Apprehensions leads us farther into the Recesses of the human Mind, than the colder and
more general Reflections suited to a continued . . . Narrative.” The most profound
psychological portrait, then, arises from the depiction, in the heat of the moment, of
spontaneous and unfiltered thoughts. Nevertheless, Richardson’s eagerness to illuminate the
“Recesses of the human Mind” is balanced by a sense of these mental recesses as private
spaces that outsiders should not enter without permission .Although the overt plot of the novel
addresses Mr. B.’s efforts to invade the recesses of Pamela’s physical person, the secondary
plot in which she must defend the secrecy of her writings shows the Squire equally keen to
intrude upon her inmost psyche. Beginning with the incident in Letter I when she reacts to
Mr. B.’s sudden appearance by concealing her letter in her bosom, Pamela instinctively resists
her Master’s attempts to expose her private thoughts; as she says, “what one writes to one’s
Father and Mother, is not for everybody.” It is not until Mr. B. learns to respect both Pamela’s
body and her writings, relinquishing access to them except when she voluntarily offers it, that
he becomes worthy of either physical or psychological intimacy with her.

Hypocrisy and Self-Knowledge: Since the initial publication of Pamela in 1740, critics of
Richardson’s moralistic novel have accused its heroine of hypocrisy, charging that her
ostensible virtue is simply a reverse-psychological ploy for attracting Mr. B. This criticism
has a certain merit, in that Pamela does indeed turn out to be more positively disposed toward
her Master than she has let on; in her defense, however, her misrepresentation of her feelings
has not been deliberate, as she is quite the last person to figure out what her “treacherous,
treacherous Heart” has felt. Pamela’s difficulty in coming to know her own heart raises larger
questions of the possibility of accurate disclosure: if Pamela cannot even tell herself the truth,
then what chance is there that interpersonal communication will be any more transparent?
The issue crystallizes when, during her captivity in Lincolnshire, Pamela becomes of
necessity almost compulsively suspicious of appearances. This understandable defense
mechanism develops into a character flaw when it combines with her natural tendency toward
pride and aloofness to prevent her reposing trust in Mr. B. when, finally, he deserves it. The
lovers thus remain at cross-purposes when they should be coming together, and only Mr. B.’s
persistence secures the union that Pamela’s suspicions have jeopardized. While the novel,
then, evinces skepticism toward the possibility of coming to know oneself or another fully, it
balances that skepticism with an emphasis on the necessity of trusting to what cannot be fully
known, lest all opportunities of fulfilling human relationships be lost.
Realism and Country Life: Eighteenth-century literature tended to idealize the life of rustic
simplicity that Pamela typifies. Dramatists were fond of rendering the tale of the licentious
squire and the chaste maiden in a high romantic strain, and Margaret Anne Doody points out
that Mr. B., when he displays Pamela to the neighbors as “my pretty Rustick,” implicitly calls
on the traditional identification of country lasses with natural beauty and pastoral innocence.
Richardson, however, disappoints these idyllic expectations by having Pamela tell her story in
the “low” style that is realistically appropriate to her class, as well as through his generous
incorporation of naturalistic details. Far from idealizing the countryside, Richardson recurs to
the dirt in which Pamela conceals her writings and plants her horse beans. In selecting his
imagery, Richardson favors not the wood nymphs and sentimental willows of pastoral
romance but such homely items as Pamela’s flannel, Mr. B.’s boiled chicken, the carp in the
pond, the grass in the garden, the mould, a cake, and the shoes that Mrs. Jewkes periodically
confiscates from Pamela. By refusing to compromise on the lowliness of his heroine and her
surroundings, Richardson makes a statement that is both socially progressive and aesthetically
radical. To discover dramatic significance, Richardson does not look to the great cities and the
exemplars of public greatness who reside there; he maintains, rather, that much of equal or
greater significance inheres in the private actions and passions of common people.
“TRISTRAM SHANDY” BY LAURENCE STERNE 1759
EXPERIMENTAL NOVEL
Summary:
The most striking formal and technical characteristics of Tristram Shandy are its
unconventional time scheme and its self-declared digressive-progressive style. Sterne,
through his fictional author-character Tristram, defiantly refuses to present events in their
proper chronological order. Again and again in the course of the novel Tristram defends his
authorial right to move backward and forward in time as he chooses. He also relies so
heavily on digressions that plot elements recede into the background; the novel is full of long
essayistic passages remarking on what has transpired or, often, on something else
altogether. Tristram claims that his narrative is both digressive and progressive, calling our
attention to the way in which his authorial project is being advanced at the very moments
when he seems to have wandered farthest afield.
By fracturing the sequence of the stories he tells and interjecting them with chains of
associated ideas, memories, and anecdotes, Tristram allows thematic significance to
emerge out of surprising juxtapositions between seemingly unrelated events. The
association of ideas is a major theme of the work, however, and not just a structural
principle. Part of the novel's self-critique stems from the way the author often mocks the
perverseness by which individuals associate and interpret events based on their own
private mental preoccupations. The author's own ideas and interpretations are presumably
just as singular, and so the novel remains above all a catalogue of the "opinions" of Tristram
Shandy.
Much of the subtlety of the novel comes from the layering of authorial voice that Sterne
achieves by making his protagonist the author of his own life story, and then presenting
that story as the novel itself. The fictional author's consciousness is the filter through
which everything in the book passes. Yet Sterne sometimes invites the reader to question
the opinions and assumptions that Tristram expresses, reminding us that Shandy is not
a simple substitute for Sterne. One of the effects of this technique is to draw the reader
into an unusually active and participatory role. Tristram counts on his audience to
indulge his idiosyncrasies and verify his opinions; Sterne asks the reader to approach
the unfolding narrative with a more discriminating and critical judgment.
“MARY BARTON” BY ELIZABETH GASKELL 1848
Romantic period novels(1800-50):
 Themes: punishment and forgiveness, sin and guilt, identity and society, revenge,
good-evil, love-hate, idealized women
 Style: individuality/democracy/personal freedom, lyrical manner, 1st person narration,
use of gothic elements, use of grim tone, frequent use of personification, common
language, interest in rustic life.
Victorian Age novels (1837-1901):
  Themes: social reform, gender inequality, child labour, huge gap btw classes, ambition
and self-improvement, love, loyalty, justice
 Style: long and complex plots, marked impressions of reality, omniscient narration,
closely observed social satire, realism, importance to 2ndary characters
Background information:
The Industrial Revolution in Great Britain
The 18th and 19th centuries were a time of great upheaval and modernization in Great Britain.
The mass proliferation of steam-powered machines, factories of all sorts, and greater transport
links enabled the period known as the Industrial Revolution to take place and completely
change the country's economy.
British industry and agriculture at the beginning of the 18th century was relatively small-scale
and lacked the sophistication of later years. Industries such as textile production were handled
on an individual or workshop basis. Spinners, weavers, and dyers worked from home or small
workshops, and thousands of different manufacturers operated up and down the country. The
small scale of this production was not limited to the textile industry. Coal mining, metal
production, and many other heavy, complicated industries were built on a much smaller scale.
Developments in technology and new inventions changed the scale of production. This
change began in the agricultural world. Steam power harnessed the increased productivity of
machines and allowed farmers to produce more food. Over the course of the 18th century, the
increased food production lowered the demand for people to work in fields and meant that an
increasing number of people lived in cities. The population grew, and the now-unemployed
agricultural laborers took up jobs in the crowded factories. The sudden shift in this economic
system led to waves of unemployment as people transitioned from rural to urban areas.
The improvements in technology did not just allow for new machines to be created. The same
materials such as metals could be produced to much higher quality. This advancement
allowed for the invention of large-scale factory machinery. Higher-quality metals meant
higher heat tolerances when building engines which meant increased efficiency and the
production of even more high-quality materials at a lower price. The Industrial Revolution
was termed a revolution because of the rapid pace of the development. This rapid pace not
only transformed the British economy but forced many poor people from countryside homes
into increasingly crowded cities.
The characters in Mary Barton work in the textile industry. This industry had traditionally
operated from small-scale or home-based workshops. The invention of the water frame by
Richard Arkwright (1732– 92) in 1769 changed this. The water frame allowed for cotton to be
spun on a single machine rather than the complex, multi-person operation it had once been.
The invention of the spinning jenny by James Hargreaves (1720–78) in 1764 also helped to
massively increase the efficiency of textile production. Power looms and other factory devices
meant that the traditional weaving process was no longer required. Cheap, light cloth could be
produced by large factories and then sold in Britain or around the world. Canals and trains
meant that shipping this produce became increasingly easy, while the improvements in
shipping meant that British textiles could be exported to other continents.
By the 19th century, many factories were operating in British urban centers such as
Manchester. Mary Barton takes place in the early to mid-1800s, by which time traditional
weaving jobs were less in demand. John Barton is a character in the novel. He has been a
weaver his entire life and takes pride in his work. The factory owners look less kindly on
these weavers and see them as extensions of the machines which make production so
much more efficient. The Industrial Revolution laid the groundwork for the
unemployment and disparity in wealth that the novel portrays. While the Industrial
Revolution transformed the British economy and made many factory owners very rich, it
left men like John Barton behind.

The Chartists
Chartism was a working-class movement that emerged in 19th-century Britain as a
reaction against the wealth disparity in the economy and the lack of political
representation for working-class men. The movement was born out of the London Working
Men's Association led by William Lovett (1800–77) and Francis Place (1771–1854). The two
men were racial self-educator advocates for change in society. They drew up a petition in
combination with the other members of the association which called for six changes to be
made in society: the right to vote for all men, each vote to be secret, elections to be held
every year, constituencies to be the same size, being a member of Parliament to be a paid
job, and the removal of the requirement that only men who owned property could
become members of Parliament.
The petition proved to be very popular among working-class men who recognized that
their lack of political representation had a direct impact on their poor working
conditions. Over 1.25 million men signed the petition, and in June 1839 it was taken to the
House of Commons and presented to the British Parliament. The Chartists' petition was
rejected outright by the members of Parliament. The rejection caused civil unrest in places
like Newport, South Wales. The Newport Rising of 1839 saw over 10,000 Chartists led by a
man named John Frost (1784–1877) rise up in open rebellion against the government, though
they were swiftly crushed by the authorities and Frost was charged with treason.
The Chartists continued to petition the government. Their 1842 attempt at another petition
was signed by over three million people, but it was also rejected by Parliament, and the
rejection was again followed by a period of social unrest. Further attempts followed over the
ensuing decade, but many of the Chartists could not afford to continue their fight, while
members became disillusioned and turned to alternative political groups. Chartism was
nevertheless one of the first working-class movements in Great Britain and left an important
legacy. By 1850 Parliament came to the conclusion that reform in the mold of the Chartists'
demands was inevitable. Acts were passed in 1867 and 1884 which satisfied some but not all
of the Chartists' demands. Change continued incrementally, and by 1918 five of the six aims
had been achieved. The only outstanding demand is the call for a parliamentary election every
year which is still not the case in Britain.
The Chartists appear in Mary Barton. John Barton is a member of the group and a part of
the march in 1839 to present the petition to Parliament. He is a representative of the
Manchester Chartists, but he becomes disillusioned with the group when the petition is
rejected. Parliament's decision to ignore the mass movement radicalizes John Barton who
feels that more extreme action is the only solution to the constant problems that working-class
men face.
The Lancashire Dialect
Mary Barton is written with a specific dialect in mind, as Elizabeth Gaskell believed that
the dialect was an essential method of understanding the plight of the working-class
poor people in Manchester. Gaskell uses local speech patterns, vocabulary, phrases, and
other regional flourishes to make the setting seem more authentic. The Lancashire dialect
emerged from the period in which the novel is set. The 18th-century drift of the population
from the countryside to urban areas and particularly Manchester fostered the creation of an
identifiable local dialect which is still heard today. In Mary Barton Gaskell provides
translations and insights into the specific form of dialect she uses. Gaskell wrote Mary Barton
while she lived in Manchester, and after she became more successful and famous she
delivered two lectures on her unique interpretation of the dialect in literature.

Summary
John Barton meets his friend George Wilson while both men take their young families for a
walk in the countryside around Manchester, England. Both men are poor and working
class, but John has more forceful views about the inequality of the society they live in.
After a day in the countryside, the families return home. George's son Jem Wilson teases
John's daughter Mary Barton in an affectionate manner. A short time later, John's wife
Mrs. Barton dies, and he blames her death on the mysterious disappearance of her sister
Esther. John's son Tom Barton also dies, and John must raise Mary alone. John
struggles to find work and becomes involved with organizations such as the Chartists
who seek to fight for workers' rights.
Mary becomes an apprentice dressmaker and a beautiful young woman. She also finds herself
caught in a difficult romantic situation. Jem Wilson loves her, but Mary has convinced
herself that she does not love him. She acts coldly toward Jem while she entertains the
attentions of Harry Carson who is the son of a rich factory owner. Mary hopes that a
marriage to Harry will lift her friends and family out of poverty. Mary turns down a
marriage proposal from Jem, but the act of turning him down makes her realize that she
truly loves him. Mary decides to end her relationship with Harry and hopes that she can
reveal her true emotions to Jem in the due passage of time.
Mary's aunt Esther returns to Manchester. She has become an alcoholic and a
prostitute, and she wants to warn Mary not to fall into the same lifestyle that has
consumed her. Esther cannot contact Mary, so she tries to pass a message to her through
John Barton. His angry reaction lands Esther in jail for a month. On release she tries to talk to
Jem. He listens to Esther's warnings for Mary and tries to provide financial help. However,
Esther insists that she cannot be saved from her alcoholism. Esther's warning convinces
Jem to confront Harry, and he demands to know Harry's intentions toward Mary. The
two men fight and a policeman intervenes. Harry mocks Jem who believes that Mary is
in love with Harry. Jem retains his affections for Mary but accepts that they will never
be together.
John Barton sinks further into depression. He cannot find work, and his involvement in
workers' rights organizations means that no one will hire him. He tries to affect change
through political means and marches to London with thousands of protestors only to have his
petition ignored. The failure convinces the workers in Manchester to strike. The factory
owners led by Harry Carson mock and ignore them. The workers want better wages and
job protections so their families do not starve to death. John convinces the workers that
more radical action is needed.
Harry Carson is shot dead. Jem Wilson is accused of murder because his gun was found
at the scene of the crime. Esther conducts her own investigation and discovers a wad of
paper used to quieten the gunshot. The paper has Mary's name written on it. Esther visits her
niece and pretends to be a distant relative. She shows Mary the paper as a warning for the
future. Mary thanks her but comes to her own realization. She recognizes that the paper
belongs to her father. She knows that Jem is innocent and that John is guilty, so she tries to
figure out how to save the man she loves without incriminating her father.
Mary turns to her friend Job Legh and his granddaughter Margaret Jennings. They travel to
Liverpool to track down Jem's cousin Will Wilson who is a sailor. He visited Manchester and
can provide an alibi for the night of the murder. Mary chases through the streets and rides a
boat in pursuit of Will's departing ship. He shouts from aboard the ship that he will return for
the trial.
The trial is a stressful time for Mary. The evidence is weighed against Jem, and everyone is
convinced of his guilt. Harry's father John Carson is vengefully pushing for a quick execution.
Will has not returned by the time Mary takes the stand. In a rigorous examination, she admits
that she loves Jem and then suffers a nervous breakdown. As Mary is escorted away, Will
appears. He provides testimony and Jem is exonerated. An exhausted, delirious Mary stays in
Liverpool where her friends and Jem nurse her back to health.
Mary recovers enough to return to Manchester and confront her father. John is like a ghost
and is overcome with guilt. He calls for Job Legh and John Carson and confesses to the
murder. He dies that night, and his final words inspire John Carson to rethink the way he
treats his workers. Slow progress is made, and workers' rights in Manchester begin to
improve.
Jem cannot return to his old workplace but is offered a job in Canada. He asks Mary and his
mother Jane Wilson, and they both agree that he should take the job. They will travel to
Canada as a family. Jem and Mary try to find Esther to take her to Canada as well. Their
search is fruitless, but one night Esther appears at the house. She dies that same night.
Mary and Jem get married and travel to Canada where they live in a log cabin with Jane and
their children.
Characters:
John Barton: John Barton is a proud weaver at a point in history where his job is
endangered by changing technologies and increased competition from abroad. John joins the
Chartists and a number of trade unions and organizations. His aim is to help and
protect the working-class people of Manchester in the face of what he sees as unfair
wealth disparity. John is a simple man who just wants to work and support his family. When
doing so becomes impossible and the political means prove ineffective, John is placed in an
impossible position. He becomes radicalized by his extreme situation and the death of people
he loves. John kills Harry Carson because he wants to shock the world and show the factory
owners that they are as fragile and as mortal as the working classes. The murder is an extreme
act committed by a man who sees no other option. John has lost friends, family members, his
work, and his pride to the inequality of the economy. He is a broken man who makes one last
attempt to seize control of his destiny. The murder shocks the world, but the guilt eats away at
John until he withers and dies. The tragedy of John's life is that his death inspires John Carson
to make actual political changes. Only through death and murder is society able to recognize
its own faults, and John Barton is one of many blood sacrifices demanded to affect even the
tiniest change in working-class conditions.
Mary Barton: Mary Barton grows up in a poor working-class neighborhood where her
beauty contrasts with the ugliness of the living conditions. Her mother and her brothers die
before she is a teenager, while her friends and neighbors starve and struggle to get by. Mary
grows up surrounded by death and horror but hopes that her good looks will allow her to
escape the grinding poverty that is all she has ever known. Mary loves Jem Wilson but buries
her feelings in the hope that marriage to the rich and handsome Harry Carson will provide
financial support for her family and neighbors. She purposefully treats Jem coldly because she
hopes to discourage his romantic interest. Mary is willing to sacrifice her happiness and
ignore her love for Jem in the hope that marriage to Harry will save what little family she has
left. Mary's hope is misplaced. The competition for her affections between Jem and Harry
reveals the hollowness of Harry's affections and leads to Jem almost being executed for
Harry's murder. The trial allows Mary to admit to herself and the world that she loves Jem.
The stress of the situation causes her to suffer a nervous breakdown, and Jem nurses her back
to health which proves to her that he was the best choice. Mary is unable to save her father,
but she escapes poverty. Her new, happy life in Canada is her reward for finally embracing
her true emotions.
Harry Carson: Harry Carson is the handsome, womanizing, arrogant son of factory owner
John Carson. Unlike his father, he did not grow up poor. He has known nothing but privilege
and luxury for his entire life and is unaccustomed to being denied access to anything he
wants. He flirts with Mary Barton for many years and leads her to believe that he wants to
marry her. He has no such plans, and only when she tries to end their relationship does he
begin to pursue her with real vigor. Harry believes that he is entitled to everything from
money to Mary's affections. Harry resents anyone who threatens his entitlement. He offers to
marry Mary only when she tries to end their relationship, and he mocks the workers who
threaten to end the unequal dynamic between themselves and the factory owners. Anyone
who encroaches on his life of privilege and wealth is treated with scorn and contempt. This
preservation of entitlement makes Harry the embodiment of everything that is unequal and
unfair about society. John Barton murders Harry because of what he represents. Harry
represents unearned and uncaring privilege, and his death is intended to strike a blow against
unfair society. Harry Carson is not clever, hardworking, or worthy of his success. He is shot
in the head to demonstrate that the factory owners might consider themselves above everyone
but that their blood can be spilled in exactly the same way. Harry's wealth cannot protect him
from dying in the streets.
Jem Wilson: Jem Wilson is a working-class man who manages to succeed where his peers
fail. He is an intelligent person and uses his skills as an engineer to excel at his job. His
inventions earn him enough money that he is able to support his family, but he spends most of
his life unable to obtain the affections of his childhood friend Mary Barton. Jem's hopeless
romantic side contrasts with his technical mindset. He spends years being rejected by Mary
but never gives up his love for her. The logic, intelligence, and common sense that succeed in
the workplace are not applied to his love life. Ultimately Jem is saved by his devotion to love
rather than his intelligence. After being falsely accused of murder, Jem is almost executed.
Mary realizes that Jem's love is real, and she works tirelessly to have him exonerated. Mary's
love for Jem finally begins to reflect Jem's love for Mary, and the couple can be honest with
each other. Jem is deserted by many of his colleagues and the intelligent men of society such
as the lawyers, clerks, and factory owners who all presume that he is guilty. Mary is the only
one who believes in his innocence. Romance and love save Jem's life when intelligence and
hard work cannot which justifies the side of Jem's personality that had once seemed so
hopeless and misplaced. Jem's authenticity, honesty, and commitment to his real emotions
save him from execution.
Themes:
Mary Barton explores themes of the rich against the poor, poverty and death, and pride
and shame. The complex, sprawling plot uses these themes to portray the difficulties of
life in working-class Manchester in the mid-1800s.

Rich against Poor

Rich against poor is a key theme in the text as it motivates many plot points. The murder of
Harry Carson, the many deaths of friends and neighbors, and John Barton's political
radicalization all occur as a result of this constant, grinding battle between the working-class
men who work in the factories of Manchester and the men who own the factories. The theme
is explicit. From the opening chapters, John Barton outlines his dislike of the dynamic of rich
factory owners who exploit their employees. This dynamic and John's opinions only worsen
over the course of the novel, and the battle brings about death and suffering at every turn.
The narrator tries not to take sides in the debate between the factory owners and the factory
employees. When the relationship between the rich and the poor is at its most strained, the
narrator is at pains to portray events in as objective a way as possible. The factory strike is
caused by the employees being given reduced wages for the same work. The factory owners
do not explain that this situation is caused by competition from abroad, but the narrator insists
on including this fact even though it has little effect on the strike's outcome. The narrator's
position is careful and considered. The theme of rich versus poor threatens to turn the novel
into a political screed. The narrator hopes to provide a more cohesive and balanced
examination of society by taking care to show both sides of the battle. That the rich and
powerful still emerge as the notably more nefarious side suggests that even the narrator's
persistent attempts to show both sides cannot hide the reality of the situation. The poor are
victimized and killed by the battle while the rich remain rich. All of the narrator's attempts at
objectivity serve to highlight the clear moral divide between the rich and the poor.
The theme is embodied by the two men who proposition Mary Barton. Jem Wilson is a
working-class man who was born in the slums and has had to grow up amid hunger, suffering,
and death. Harry Carson is the rich and powerful son of a factory owner and has known
nothing but wealth for his entire life. Mary loves Jem but hopes that marriage to Harry will
lift her friends and family out of poverty. Mary is just a plaything for Harry, and he never has
any real interest in marrying her. His wealth allows him to play with the affections of a
woman as a hobby, while Mary is forced to sacrifice her only opportunity for true love to feed
her dying father. The decisions made by the poor people reveal that they only have a slim
margin for error, while Harry Carson can do as he pleases almost without repercussion. Jem
Wilson is the opposite of Harry in this respect. He has to do everything perfectly to succeed.
He is a hardworking, intelligent man who uses his expertise to secure a moderately good job
and to provide some protection for his family. Jem almost loses everything through no fault of
his own. He is accused of Harry's murder and loses his job while also nearly losing his life
and the woman he loves. Jem has nothing to do with the murder, but his status as a poor man
means that he is always in a precarious position. Harry Carson is ultimately a victim of his
own entitlement in the battle between the rich and the poor. He does as he pleases and cannot
envision anyone ever stopping him. John Barton shoots him in the head to make an example
of a rich factory owner. In the battle of the rich against the poor, the theme shows how one
side is always in danger while the other can be brought down only by its own arrogance.

Poverty and Death

The close link between poverty and death is a theme throughout Mary Barton. The poorest
characters are the closest to death. Every working-class family in the book has suffered from
at least one premature death. John Barton loses his wife and child, Jem Wilson loses his father
and siblings, and Margaret Jennings loses both of her parents. All of them are killed by a
combination of illness and starvation which emerge directly out of their poverty. The novel
takes great care to show how these deaths are a direct product of poverty and would therefore
be avoidable in a fairer and more equal society.
Illness kills Jem Wilson's twin brothers and Mary Barton's brother. The boys catch an illness,
but they are not able to receive the nutrition and treatment they need because of their lack of
money. John Barton sells everything he has to try to afford the food needed to feed his dying
son. Characters spend the meagre resources they have on ineffective medicine in an attempt to
save children and family members who are already too malnourished to survive a mild illness.
Poverty emerges as the direct result of these deaths, as sickness disproportionately affects the
poorest members of society. Many characters have to turn to collective organizations such as
trade unions to afford basic funeral expenses. Only by coming together are the poorest people
in Manchester able to afford to endure their terminal illnesses.
Direct starvation is another killer in Manchester's poorest communities. John Barton finds
himself unemployed and begins to waste away. He cannot afford to eat, and his diet of water
and bread turns the burly, friendly man depicted at the beginning of the story into a gaunt,
ghostlike wretch. The economic downturn that hits the factories means that many people
simply cannot afford to eat. The factory owners continue to eat the finest, richest meals they
can afford. George Wilson loses his job and begins to starve. One day he is sent to John
Carson's house, and the servants in the kitchen take pity and give him a meal. This meal is the
largest, most impressive meal any poor character eats during the course of the story and one
of the few times George is able to eat his fill. He dies a short time later. The poor people of
Manchester are allowed to starve while the rich are able to eat more than their fair share. The
best meal of a poor person's life is composed of the crumbs left on the rich characters' tables.
The line between poverty and death is so thin that a few weeks of no work is enough to starve
a man and his family.

Pride and Shame

John Barton insists that he wants to work. He does not want to be given charity, and he does
not want to be given any more than what he deems to be his fair share. His career as a skilled
weaver places him in a precarious position. Technical innovations and increased competition
from abroad mean that the skill he has spent a lifetime perfecting is no longer in demand.
John takes pride in his work, and his proud, assertive character will not allow him to endure
the shame and guilt of unemployment. However, the society he lives in does not care. His
pride and shame are irrelevant amid the cutthroat realities of factory production. John's pride
is worth nothing to the factory owners who will pay as little as they can to anyone willing to
work.
John tries to exercise his pride. He is a working-class man and proud of it, and he gathers
together other working-class men in trade unions in the mistaken belief that their collective
will be strong enough to earn them better rights. John is an optimist in this respect. He begins
to apply the same pride that he applied to weaving to organizing the workers. He tries to
petition the government and to organize a strike, but then he realizes that none of this matters.
Emotions
such as pride and shame are immaterial, and all that matters is production and profit. The
factory owners view the workers as mere machines that can be turned on and off at will. They
do not believe that the workers can possess emotions such as pride or shame. John may insist
that he simply wants to earn a fair wage for a day's work, but this argument is so far beyond
the parameters or interests of the factory owners that they laugh the workers out of the room
during the meeting regarding the strike. This poor treatment makes John realize the hollow
nature of his pride. He is made to feel less than human, and this process of dehumanization
makes him turn to more radical solutions.
John murders Harry Carson in an attempt to regain his pride, but he is left with nothing but
shame. The murder has little to do with Harry's personality or his interest in Mary Barton.
John kills Harry because of what he represents. Harry emerges as the figurehead of the factory
owner group, so he represents wealth and entitlement as well as the pain and the shame that
John has been made to feel. The murder is a demonstration of pride. John shoots Harry in the
head, and the action is a demonstration that despite all their wealth and success the factory
owners are just as fragile and human as the workers. The declaration of pride does not work
as John hopes. All he feels is shame and guilt. These negative emotions consume him until he
wastes away and dies. John's attempt to regain his pride feeds immediately into his growing
sense of shame. This cycle of reduced pride that leads to shame is felt by many characters in
the novel who struggle to find a solution to the lack of work, lack of pride, and lack of agency
the society imposes on them. The cycle is a violent one and seems to be inescapable. John's
fate illustrates how pride and shame are bound together in the working-class situation, and the
theme reveals how the removal of pride and the imposition of shame can quickly become
dangerous and violent. Such strong emotions inevitably elicit strong, destructive responses
and demonstrate the stakes at play in an increasingly corrosive, alienated, and unequal
society.
“HARD TIMES” BY CHARLES DICKENS
Industrial Revolution
The first wave of the Industrial Revolution in Britain took place between 1760 and 1830 as
technologies emerged to increase production of goods and expanded trade increased demand.
These changes in the early decades of the 19th century created a shift toward economies based
on manufacturing and urban living that redefined society first in England, as well as the
United States and the rest of Europe, throughout the 19th century and into the 20th. The
cotton textile industry was one of the first to shift toward automation with the invention of
machines such as the spinning jenny and the power loom in the late 1700s. Powered by steam,
these devices could produce far more fabric in far less time than a single spinner or weaver
could with a traditional wheel and loom. Therefore, cloth production moved from homes or
small workshops to factories, prompting workers to migrate from rural areas to cities where
factories were located, which greatly changed English life at the time. While scholars define
the Industrial Revolution as taking place between 1760 and 1830, the decades that followed
witnessed an ongoing proliferation of factories in urban centers. Outside London, especially
in the north of England, small towns grew as large numbers of people moved there to find
work. Housing was hastily, and often poorly, constructed to accommodate the new residents.
Additional factories were also built to produce the machinery of manufacturing. Mines were
expanded to provide coal to power steam engines, which produced tremendous amounts of
smoke and coal dust. For example, London became famous for its thick "fog" in the 19th
century, the result of industrial smoke mixing with natural moisture in the air. At the time, no
environmental attention was paid to the conditions.
Hard Times addresses the social and political changes associated with industrialization
through the portrayal of Coketown. (Its named in reference to coke, the residue left from
burning coal.) The conditions of this fictional industrial city in England mirror those found in
growing factory towns such as Manchester, Sheffield, and Liverpool. The substandard
housing and the proliferation of smokestacks are presented in detailed descriptions Hard
Times.

Factory Conditions
Charles Dickens knew firsthand the working conditions in the factories of industrial England
from his time as a 12-year-old in Warren's boot-blacking factory in London. His account of
this time describes the filthy floors, rotting staircases, constant dampness, and swarms of rats.
Child labor in factories was common, as impoverished families needed all sources of income
in the changed society, and some children worked because they had no families at all.
Dickens's experience at Warren's was unpleasant but less hazardous than the experiences of
young laborers who operated machines. Such conditions eventually prompted Parliament to
enact regulations in 1833 to limit working hours and improve conditions for children in
factories. Nevertheless, for both children and adults, hours remained long, pay low, food
scarce, and, despite some regulation, conditions dirty and often unsafe. In Hard Times,
Dickens combines his personal experiences with political understanding to criticize the
conditions found in 19th-century factories throughout England and Europe.
Living Conditions
Life outside the factories was scarcely better than the conditions within the factories.
Accounts abound of overcrowded and cramped living spaces, the result of low wages and
population shift from rural to urban areas. With lack of sanitation a serious problem,
outbreaks of disease were not unusual, especially in manufacturing centers in northern
England—location of the fictional Coketown of Hard Times—because they were farther away
from the regulatory eye of the government in London.
Philosopher Friedrich Engels, before writing The Communist Manifesto in 1848 with fellow
philosopher Karl Marx, published an account of his observations of English factories in 1843.
His description of the city of Manchester includes the "irregular cramming together of
dwellingsin ways which defy all rational plan." One such cluster of dwellings is described
surrounding "a privy without a door, so dirty that the inhabitants can pass into and out of the
court only by passing through foul pools of stagnant urine and excrement." The rest of his
description of Manchester contains similarly disturbing details of filth and stench combined
with unsafe and inadequate accommodations. These conditions not only fed Engels's radical
political ideas, but they also led eventually, in the middle of the century, to the formation of
more moderate labor unions that aimed to improve wages and conditions for the working
classes.
In Hard Times, Dickens provides less explicit descriptions of the subpar living conditions
factory workers inhabit, but he does present characters such as poor factory worker Stephen
Blackpool who offer insight about the human consequences of living in close proximity to
such squalor and who make impassioned pleas for improved conditions for himself and his
peers.
Utilitarianism
Utilitarianism at this time became a popular philosophical school of thought among the
educated classes. Developed by political economist John Stuart Mill and social reformer
Jeremy Bentham, utilitarianism rested on the idea that self-interest drives all human behavior,
and one must evaluate actions by their potential to create pleasure rather than pain to the
individual. Understanding the facts, rather than the emotional implications or imagined
outcomes, of a given situation is essential to such evaluation. On a larger moral scale,
goodness also can be evaluated according to the consequences of actions and how much good
or evil those consequences might bring to how many people. In this way one can analyze and
quantify human behavior in ways that were very new compared with philosophies of the past.
In Hard Times, the utilitarian model led Dickens to satirize and exaggerate both Mr.
Bounderby's and Mr. Gradgrind's strict reliance on fact and reason to assess situations and
make decisions. Mr. Gradgrind, especially, must face the consequences of such extreme
pedagogy when he sees emotional barrenness as its result—in Louisa's passivity and inability
to deal with emotion, in Tom's detached sense of entitlement and rebellion against the lack of
amusement, and in Bitzer's uncompromising rigidity and soullessness in acting only as he was
trained to.
Divorce in 19th-Century England
Before 1857 divorce was possible in England only by an act of Parliament. As Mr. Bounderby
tells Stephen Blackpool in Hard Times, divorce involved petitioning lower courts as part of
the process of bringing the case before Parliament. Costs were prohibitively high, so divorce
was reserved for only the wealthy. For the most part only men could seek a divorce and only
on the grounds of adultery. Wives could seek a divorce only if they could prove adultery in
addition to extreme cruelty, and if a woman left her husband, she could be legally compelled
to return to him.
In 1857 Parliament passed the Matrimonial Causes Act, which moved divorce hearings from
Parliament to a special court. This act may have marginally reduced the cost of divorce, but
little else changed. Adultery remained the only grounds for divorce, but wives no longer had
to prove life-threatening cruelty as additional grounds. This meant many people living in
permanent conditions of unhappiness and estrangement had no recourse.
Satire
In an 1855 letter to his friend Charles Knight, publisher of London's Penny Magazine,
Dickens focused on the satiric aspect of the recently published Hard Times, "My satire is
against those who see figures and averages, and nothing else—the representatives of the
wickedest and most enormous vice of this time." As satire Hard Times uses exaggeration and
irony to illustrate and criticize serious social, political, and economic problems during the
years after industrialization had taken a firm hold in society. Objects of Dickens's ridicule
include Coketown and the myths that govern life there. He also pokes fun at Mr. Gradgrind's
educational principles and their implementation as well as the exaggerated characterization of
Josiah Bounderby—a man whose malice is cloaked by his ridiculous persona. The
juxtapositions of downtrodden factory workers with joyful circus performers and oblivious
upper classes also become targets of Dickens's ridicule. Scholars and critics also have
recognized Hard Times as one of Dickens's most scathing social commentaries, in which he
confronts the issues of working conditions associated with industrialization, income
inequality, frustrations of the working classes, purposes and results of education, and
environmental damage.
Symbols:
Loom: Stephen Blackpool makes multiple references to his loom, a steam-powered machine
used widely in textile factories after industrialization. For Stephen, the loom defines his life
and gives it purpose. Thus, it symbolizes the dominance of work in the lives of the workers
and the narrow definition of the workers' sense of self and place in the world. Stephen views
his work as a comfort, which it is in a sense, but the loom also symbolizes the overwhelming
power of work that keeps Stephen tethered to a bleak, monotonous, and unchangeable
existence. He is, in a sense, both defined and imprisoned by his loom. The position in which
he must remain to operate the machine—hunched—defines his posture: stooped and hunched.
Old beyond his years, he knows no way of life other than the loom, to which he returns day
after day, year after year. Although he longs for better conditions, he has no desire to leave
the security his loom provides him within these conditions, as a person imprisoned for many
years might have little desire for freedom.

Bottle of Nine Oils: One of the last things Mr. Jupe does before leaving is send Sissy to get
him a bottle of nine oils, a primitive remedy for the aches and pains he suffers from executing
the acrobatics of his performances. Sissy keeps the bottle throughout her childhood, and Mr.
Gradgrind tells Mr. Sleary she still has it as an adult when Mr. Sleary reveals his belief that
Mr. Jupe has died. To Mr. Gradgrind, the bottle symbolizes Sissy's childlike feelings about
her father: her unwillingness to accept facts and accept her father is not coming back. Such
sentimentality is the primary obstacle to her formal education. For Sissy, however, the bottle
represents unfailing hope and love for her father. Her belief he might return helps her cope
with the pain of his absence and reminds her of his love for her. Her sentimentality provides
her with emotional stability in the face of his abandonment, and by keeping the legendary
bottle into adulthood, she symbolically carries her father's love with her into adulthood. Her
belief in his love allows her to grow into a productive and balanced adult.
Circus: With clowns, acrobats, and elaborate horse-riding shows based on legendary themes,
the circus symbolizes the triumph of imagination and whimsy, or what Mr. Gradgrind would
call "fancy." The circus features such performance pieces as the enticingly named
"equestrians Tyrolean flower-act," which presumably combines flowers and horses in a
creative way. Another performance features Master Kidderminster as Cupid, complete with
"curls, wreaths, and wings." These performances provide factory workers an escape from the
monotony and squalor of everyday life. Even though wealthy men such as Mr. Gradgrind and
Mr. Bounderby dismiss circus performers as disreputable slackers, circus performances
require great skill and extensive training, showing the variety of expertise and ability that can
lead to a productive and satisfying life, one most definitely not based on fact. The circus
represents not merely the escape entertainment provides but also a broader understanding of
what success and prosperity can mean. The dismissal of the circus, in turn, represents a
restrictive worldview that neglects the validity of fanciful human joy.
Bank: In complete contrast to the haphazard whimsy of the circus, the bank is a regimented
and organized space, cleaner than the factories but dismal and restrictive in its own way. It is
part of "the wholesome monotony of the town," a red brick building nearly indistinguishable
from the other red brick buildings that surround it. The desks in the office space are set up in
rows that echo the rows of machines in a factory, and Tom Gradgrind finds his place in the
bank as oppressive as Stephen Blackpool finds the factory—perhaps more so. It is a
privileged but dull existence. As a symbol of wealth, the bank shows how wealth oppresses
those who don't have it. The images of heavy doors and locks emphasize how the money is
kept separate from all human eyes and hands. The building itself, as well as the institution, is
a symbol. A nondescript but imposing brick structure, the bank is inaccessible to those who
do not have money, and thus serves as a physical reminder of what people living in poverty
can never obtain.
Themes:
Reason and Imagination
The teachers and masters at Mr. Gradgrind's school present factual knowledge and adherence
to pure reason as the keys to a successful and satisfying life. Characters such as Mr.
Gradgrind and Mr. Bounderby, along with the menacingly named Mr. M'Choakumchild, aim
not only to teach their students the value of facts but to eliminate any sign of "fancy"—
emotional or creative response—because in their narrow worldview these ideas have no value.
In an early scene, a teacher goes so far as to explain why images of horses and flowers should
not be used in wallpaper because, in fact, horses do not live on walls and thus do not make an
appropriate wallpaper design, and because flowers do not grow on floors, they do not make an
appropriate carpet design. Such narrow-minded thoughts on aesthetics illustrate the extremity
of devotion to fact at a level that seems to defy reason and kill off all beauty in people's lives.
Mr. Bounderby and Mr. Gradgrind credit reason and fact as the secrets of their financial
success, and for Mr. Bounderby the evidence indicates this belief is accurate. Even though
Mr. Bounderby grossly exaggerates (in fact lies about) the story of his humble beginnings, the
education and apprenticeship his mother provides do allow him to rise from his start as the
son of a widowed shopkeeper to become the owner of a bank and factory and, as such, a
respected member of Coketown's ruling class. Even Sissy Jupe reaps some financial rewards
for choosing an education in reason. Arguably, she might have been at least equally happy
had she remained with the circus and taken an apprenticeship there or happier with a more
liberal education, but her father believes in education as the key to his daughter's long-term
prosperity—so much so he abandons her so she can pursue her schooling without interruption
where she had already begun. Even though Sissy is an unremarkable student by the standards
of her fact-oriented teachers, she maintains her position in the Gradgrind household as a
caregiver for Mrs. Gradgrind and the younger children. She does enjoy a safe and stable life
as part of a wealthy family, which eventually culminates in marriage and a family of her own,
really the most she might hope for then. According to Mr. Bounderby and Mr. Gradgrind, the
lower classes, in contrast, remain poor because they distract their minds with entertainment,
such as the displays of the circus or books of fairy stories, instead of focusing entirely on facts
or the hard work that might better their station. However, Louisa Gradgrind's emotional
collapse and the dissolution of her marriage illustrate the flaws in such an unbalanced
approach to living. She is unable to cope with her emotions because she has never been
exposed to the art, literature, or creative thought that might have helped her develop and live
with feelings. Sissy Jupe's experience illustrates the importance of imagination as well. Her
education in reason does provide her with economic opportunities that give her a stable and
happy life, but her early years in the circus, steeped in her father's love and the imaginative
performances of his colleagues, give her an emotional grounding that prepares her for
adulthood. She has gained strength and balance because her education in facts has been
tempered with roots in fancy. Pure reason cannot provide sufficient guidance in the complex
world of human behavior and emotions.

Childhood
Childhood figures most prominently in Book 1, as this section focuses on the formative years
of Louisa and Tom Gradgrind and Sissy Jupe. The lessons and experiences of childhood
shape these characters later in life.
For Louisa the emphasis on reason and the rejection of imagination and emotion in her
childhood lead her to an unbalanced adulthood. Her over-reliance on reason and alienation
from her own feelings make her passive and indifferent, leading her into a loveless marriage
and to the edge of scandal with an extra-marital affair, which does not come to pass. When
faced with emotions, she has no idea how to handle them. Her life comes apart as a result,
requiring her to reassess her understanding of herself and her place in the world, and rebuild
accordingly.
For Tom the emphasis on reason in his childhood deprives him of the pleasures of childhood,
defined by fun and play, and leads him to resent his family deeply. His attempts to capture the
youth he feels he missed lead to irresponsibility, entitlement, excessive gambling, and other
disreputable activities. He feels entitled to his sister's continued assistance and later needs his
father to help him avoid the consequence of stealing from the bank. Throughout the book the
narrator refers to Tom as "the whelp," a term for an unweaned puppy or dissolute young man.
In short, Tom's lack of a balanced childhood prevents him from growing into a balanced,
responsible adult.
On the other hand, Sissy Jupe experiences a more balanced childhood and grows up
accordingly. She spends her first seven years in the warm and whimsical environment of the
circus, well loved by her father and the other performers. She reads fairy tales and plays with
her dog. She spends the second half of her childhood studying facts and reason in school.
Although she considers herself a failure as a student, her early experiences temper the strict
education she receives and give her emotional and imaginative grounding that make her a
useful resource when the Gradgrind family needs her.
“JANE EYRE” BY CHARLOTTE BRONTE
In the early 19th century, critics often dismissed the work of women writers as light
entertainment. Much of it (Jane Austen's work being a notable exception) was, in fact,
sentimental, romantic, and trivial, written for popular consumption. Women writers who
wanted to create more literary works often found that their work would be taken more
seriously if they used a male pseudonym. Charlotte Brontë published her first two novels,
Jane Eyre and Shirley, under the name Currer Bell. Her sisters Emily and Anne published
under the names Ellis and Acton Bell, respectively. In an 1850 preface to Emily's novel
Wuthering Heights, Charlotte explained why they decided to use pseudonyms: "without at
that time suspecting that our mode of writing and thinking was not what is called 'feminine'—
we had a vague impression that authoresses are liable to be looked on with prejudice; we had
noticed how critics sometimes use for their chastisement the weapon of personality, and for
their reward, a flattery, which is not true praise."
Critical Response
Critics enthusiastically recommended Jane Eyre at the time of its publication. One London
critic, reviewing the book in 1847, said that the author showed "fertile invention, great power
of description, and a happy faculty for conceiving and sketching character." He called it a
"remarkable novel, very far indeed above the average." Some reviewers detected that the
author of Jane Eyre was a woman, but despite Charlotte's concern that female authors are
judged differently than male authors, this didn't dampen their praise. George Henry Lewes
wrote in the Westminster Review in 1848: "Whoever may be the author, we hope to see more
such books from her pen."
Jane Eyre has enjoyed enduring popularity due to its emotional power and strong female
voice. Brontë has been celebrated for her effective use of natural descriptions to establish
mood, her clear depiction of the obstacles women faced in male-dominated society, and her
probing of the protagonist's psyche. Like many other rich and memorable works, the novel
has inspired other writers to explore its world, chief among them Jean Rhys's Wide Sargasso
Sea, something of a prequel that focuses on the character of Bertha Mason.
Victorian Britain
Jane Eyre was written during the Victorian era, named for the queen who ruled the United
Kingdom from 1837 to 1901. It was a time of economic growth through the Industrial
Revolution, expansion of the British empire, and increasing democratization. During this
period British society had sharp divisions between the classes. At the top were the aristocrats,
the wealthiest class. They had ties to royalty and didn't need to work because their income
came from land and wealth passed down through the generations. Their children were mostly
educated at home by tutors or governesses. University education was open only to males;
females were expected to marry. Noble parents often arranged marriages for their children to
bring increased wealth, land, or prestige to the family. The presence of a new class of wealthy
entrepreneurs, enriched by the Industrial Revolution, posed something of a challenge to the
aristocrats. That class nevertheless remained at the top of the social ladder. Some wealthy
industrialists hoped to gain status by marrying a child into a noble family. Some nobles, their
estates grown less lucrative, seized the opportunity to improve their financial position through
such a match.
Strict rules of behavior governed interactions between the lower classes and the aristocrats.
The servants who did the work of keeping the aristocrats' manor houses and large estates in
order were expected to show great deference to their employers. They were to do their work
quietly and without drawing attention to themselves. Most servants had little or no education;
they received very low pay and had few opportunities to better themselves. Governesses, who
had some education and were entrusted with caring for the children, were treated somewhat
better but nevertheless had an in-between status, both part of the family and not part of the
family. Farmers, blacksmiths, and other working people were also considered lower class.
The middle class included merchants, bankers, doctors, teachers, and members of the clergy.
Christianity was very important to people of all classes. The Bible was widely read and often
quoted, and the village church was a central part of community life. During the 19th century,
particularly during the reign of Queen Victoria, Britain was solidifying its empire, ruling over
colonies in India, Australia, and the West Indies. The British generally viewed non-Europeans
as having ways of life and beliefs inferior to their own, and this inspired many churchgoers to
travel abroad as missionaries to convert them to Christianity.
Summary:
Jane Eyre is the coming-of-age story, or bildungsroman, of an orphan girl in early 19th-
century Britain. The novel takes place in the early 1800s at fictional locations in northern
England.
Orphaned shortly after her birth, 10-year-old Jane Eyre lives at Gateshead Hall with her aunt,
Mrs. Reed, and the Reed children, Eliza, John, and Georgiana. The Reeds dislike Jane
intensely because she has no money, and they treat her as an outsider. As the story opens,
Jane is quietly reading. Her cousin John bullies her and scuffles with her. Mrs. Reed, as usual,
blames Jane and banishes her to the red-room for punishment.
The red-room is where Jane's uncle died nine years earlier. While she is confined there, Jane
thinks she sees a ghost and she passes out. When she wakes up, Mr. Lloyd, the apothecary
who is tending to her, asks Jane about her life at Gateshead. Mr. Lloyd suggests that going
away to school might solve Jane's problems, and Jane agrees. Happy to be rid of Jane, Mrs.
Reed agrees as well. A few months later Jane leaves Gateshead Hall for Lowood school.
Lowood presents a new set of problems for Jane. The students are cold, underfed, and poorly
clothed. Helen Burns, a new friend, helps Jane accept the poor conditions. After a typhus
epidemic passes through the school, during which time Helen dies from consumption,
Lowood's deplorable conditions are investigated and remedied. During her six years as a
student, Jane rises to the top of her class. She then stays on as a teacher for two more years.
In search of new experiences, Jane accepts the post of governess at Thornfield, a large,
beautiful estate. Her student, Adèle Varens, a young French girl, is the ward of Mr. Rochester,
Jane's employer. Mr. Rochester is quirky and prone to dark moods, but Jane finds herself
falling in love with him. One night she saves his life when she puts out a fire that has been set
in his room. Jane wonders if the fire might be connected to strange laughter she sometimes
hears on the third floor, and Mr. Rochester says that a servant, Grace Poole, was responsible.
Later another mysterious incident occurs involving an attack on Mr. Mason, a visitor to
Thornfield. Again Mr. Rochester blames Grace Poole, but he doesn't fire her.
Jane is called away to Gateshead Hall at the request of her dying aunt. Mrs. Reed reveals that
Jane's uncle, John Eyre of Madeira, has been trying to find Jane and would like to adopt her
and leave his fortune to her. Mrs. Reed, still angry with Jane, informed him that Jane was
dead. Now that Mrs. Reed is dying, she wants to unburden herself.
When Jane returns to Thornfield, Mr. Rochester tells her that he has secretly been in love with
her, and he asks her to marry him. Jane accepts. However, happiness eludes Jane. Her
wedding ceremony is interrupted by a lawyer, Mr. Briggs, who claims that Rochester is
already married. Rochester admits that, when he was a young man in Jamaica, his father had
arranged his marriage to a woman named Bertha Mason. When Bertha revealed herself as
insane and unmanageable, Rochester secretly brought her to Thornfield. He put her under the
care of Grace Poole, on the third floor. It was Bertha, not Grace Poole, who set the fire in
Rochester's room and attacked Mr. Mason, her brother. Rochester pleads for Jane's
understanding. He hadn't meant to deceive her but had convinced himself that Bertha's
madness somehow nullified his marriage. He thought that, if he lived a good life, he deserved
to find real love with Jane. Jane forgives him in her heart and assures him that she still loves
him, but, as he is a married man, she knows that she must leave him.
Jane flees Thornfield and finds herself on the outskirts of a remote village on the moors with
nothing but the clothes she is wearing. Three siblings—Mary, Diana, and St. John Rivers—
take her in; Jane begins to teach at the village school and becomes close to the Rivers siblings.
Jane receives news that she has inherited a large fortune from her uncle, John Eyre. To her
delight she discovers that the Rivers siblings are her cousins, and she decides to share the
fortune with them. St. John pressures Jane to go to India with him as his wife to do missionary
work. She doesn't love him but she's on the verge of accepting, out of a sense of religious
duty, when she thinks she hears Rochester's voice calling her name. She's been worried that
Rochester has fallen into despair, and suddenly she knows that she must find out what has
happened to him.
Jane goes back to Thornfield only to find the manor in ruins; it has burned to the ground.
Bertha had escaped and set the fire before falling from the roof to her death. Jane rushes to
Ferndean, the remote house where Mr. Rochester, who lost his sight and the use of a hand in
the fire, is living. They rekindle their relationship and marry. Ten years later Jane reports that
they are closer and happier than ever. Rochester has regained some of his sight, they have a
son, and all of their loved ones are happy as well, even the dying St. John.
Characters:
Jane Eyre: Treated as an outcast by the Reeds, who take her in as an infant, Jane wants
desperately to prove she is worthy of love and respect. She perseveres to become a star
student, a well-liked teacher, and then governess to the young ward of Mr. Rochester. After
agreeing to marry Mr. Rochester, an obstacle to the marriage presents a dilemma for Jane,
which tests her deep-rooted morality.
Edward Rochester: Edward Rochester, 20 years older than Jane, falls in love with her and
asks her to marry him, even though his first wife, Bertha, who is incurably insane, is secretly
living at Thornfield. When he was a young man, Rochester's father and brother tricked him
into marrying Bertha for their own financial gain. He is subject to dark, angry moods as he
tries to cope with the fact that he is tied for life to a madwoman. Craving a relationship with
someone he loves and respects, Rochester convinces himself that, because of Bertha's
insanity, God will allow him to redeem himself by marrying Jane and living a good, moral
life.
Adèle Varens: Adèle Varens is the daughter of a French dance-hall singer who was once Mr.
Rochester's mistress. Although she is most likely not his daughter, Rochester has taken
responsibility for the girl since her mother abandoned her. Her presence is a reminder of a part
of Rochester's past for which he wishes to make reparations and is an indication of his sincere
desire to put his dissolute past behind him and lead a more worthy life.
Bertha Mason: Bertha Mason, the Creole daughter of a wealthy Jamaican family, became
Rochester's wife in an arranged marriage. When she descended into madness and violence,
Rochester arranged to have her secretly cared for in a locked room on the third floor of
Thornfield. Once a beautiful woman, she has taken on the appearance of a large, menacing
beast, growling and bursting into maniacal laughter. She sometimes escapes her room late at
night to carry out violent or destructive acts. Bertha represents the uncontrollable forces in life
that test the characters' strength and resolve. Compared to a vampire and other mythic beasts,
she adds to the novel's air of gothic mystery.
Mrs. Sarah Reed: Mrs. Reed promised her husband, on his deathbed, to care for Jane as one
of her own children. However, she despises Jane for being a poor dependent and treats Jane as
an outcast in the household. She allows her own children to abuse and torment Jane. When
Jane is 10 years old, Mrs. Reed sends her to a religious school for poor children. Eight years
later, when she is dying, she contacts Jane to ease her conscience about a lie she told that
affected Jane. However, she maintains her dislike of Jane to the end. Mrs. Reed is
representative of that part of society that has a shallow fixation on wealth as the only measure
of a person's value.
St. John Rivers: St. John (pronounced sin-jin) and his sisters, Mary and Diana, rescue Jane
when she flees from Thornfield. He finds her a teaching position and later asks her to marry
him and go with him to India to do missionary work. Deeply religious and conscientious, St.
John is ambitious. Missionary work appeals to him because he wants more than an ordinary
life. He has a strong personality, but he is somewhat severe and distant. His spirituality, unlike
that of Helen Burns, lacks warmth and forgiveness.
Helen Burns: Helen Burns, though only a few years older than Jane, becomes a kind of
spiritual mentor to her. Helen is well-read, philosophical, and intensely spiritual. She teaches
Jane to learn to temper her passions by keeping long-term goals in mind whenever she is
tempted to give in to impulse. Helen's example helps Jane persevere and become successful at
Lowood (after Helen's death). Although Jane does not completely understand Helen's spiritual
beliefs, she is attracted to the feelings of hope and joy that she associates with her friend.
Symbols:
Fire: Images of fire throughout the novel represent passion, destruction, and comfort or
regeneration. Fire, like passion, has the qualities of heat and light. When Rochester thanks
Jane for saving his life, "Strange energy was in his voice, strange fire in his look." When
Rochester is anxious to get to the church for their wedding, he tells Jane, "My brain is on fire
with impatience." In this sense fire symbolizes vibrancy—intense aliveness.
Fire's destructive force visits Thornfield on three occasions. The first is the fire in Rochester's
room, when Jane saves him. While Jane's introduction to the mystery of Thornfield occurs in
Chapter 11, when she first hears the strange laughter, it is the fire in Chapter 15 that makes
the mystery a threatening one. Jane saves Rochester from this fire, foreshadowing how, at the
book's end, she saves him with her love after the final fire. The second instance of fire at
Thornfield is the lightning strike on the chestnut tree just moments after Jane and Rochester
become engaged to marry. Here the destructive force of fire is an omen. The destruction of
Thornfield by fire is the most dramatic representation of fire's destructive force.
The image of a fire in a fireplace conveys a feeling of warmth and comfort and signals a
pleasant experience, as when Helen Burns and Jane take tea in Miss Temple's room: "How
pretty, to my eyes, did the china cups and bright teapot look ... on the little round table near
the fire." In shock after her wedding has been abruptly halted, Jane experiences the
regenerating effect of fire; Rochester takes her to the library, where she feels "the reviving
warmth of a fire." The fire that destroys Thornfield can also be viewed as a regenerative force
because it was the beginning of Rochester's redemption.
The red-room, which is the color of fire, provides another set of symbolic meanings of
fire. The room is cold and unwelcoming "because it seldom has a fire." The absence of
fire is the absence of comfort. Jane's sense that the room is, or may be, haunted gives
another reading to its coldness. It is a room of death, without the fire of passion, of life.
The light that Jane sees and is disturbed by is reflected lantern light. Thus, what should
be a positive—firelight as a guide to where to move and a way to ensure safety—
becomes instead strange and threatening.
Ice or coldness serves as a symbolic counterpoint to fire's passion and vibrancy. Early in
Jane's life, when she is isolated and alone, she faces the coldness of the red-room and of
Lowood, where Mr. Brocklehurst—a man without passion—forces the students to live in a
place where they awaken to find pitchers with water that have turned to ice. St. John's
coldness contrasts with Rochester's—and Jane's—fiery passion. While that passion can be
destructive, so can its absence. St. John is described as being "cold as an iceberg," and his kiss
makes Jane think of "marble kisses or ice kisses." With him Jane "felt daily more and more
that I must disown half my nature, stifle half my faculties." His ice is stifling the fire of her
passionate nature.

The Madwoman: Bertha, the madwoman on the third floor, represents hidden, shameful
secrets. Because of her Creole heritage, her marriage to Rochester was outside the bounds of
class conventions, and her madness could be seen as the price that both she and Rochester pay
for ignoring convention. It is also a forced marriage. Rochester's father and brother trap him
in it, meaning it is a loveless marriage, one based on financial concerns. Bertha represents the
destructive force of unbridled passion, of the absence of self-control. Without self-control,
humans are violent creatures. When she escapes from her third-floor confinement, she does
not attempt to gain her freedom but attacks others. Bertha is the opposite of the maturing Jane
—completely dependent, confined, angry, unreasoning, and violent. She is Jane's double, the
figure that mirrors Jane in negative ways. Indeed, in her dependence, the limits placed on her,
and her anger, she is like the young Jane. If she is of mixed race, that provides yet another
contrast to Jane, who is thoroughly British.

Dreams: Jane mentions her dreams often, and these dreams may reveal her subconscious
wants and fears, the passions that she is working so hard to control. When Rochester disguises
himself as a gypsy to tell Jane's fortune, she feels her mind clouded, as though in a dream.
When she realizes he is the gypsy, she wonders if she had been dreaming. Jane recognizes
that dreams have significance. She says that she never laughs at "presentiments"
(premonitions) "because I have had strange ones of my own" and then proceeds to recount the
disturbing dreams she had after the attack on Mr. Mason. Before doing so, though, she
confirms the potent meaning of dreams. Bessie Lee, she said, believed that dreaming of a
child was an ill omen, a belief that was strengthened when Bessie dreamed of a child the night
before learning of her sister's death. Jane's dreams were also of children, of her with a baby
that sometimes laughs and sometimes cries. The next day Bessie Lee arrives and tells Jane
that Mrs. Reed is dying.
Later, after Jane and Rochester are engaged, she has more disturbing dreams of children. In
the first she is holding a child as she and Rochester walk, but he is ahead of her and gets
farther and farther distant; she can never catch up. In the second she is clutching a baby while
walking in the ruins of Thornfield, Rochester barely visible as he again moved away from her.
The child might represent the still-young hope of happiness, her not-yet-real new identity as
Mrs. Rochester, or her desire for motherhood—a chance to be the parent she lost. Clearly,
though, the image of losing Rochester, so central to both dreams, is the disturbing
presentiment that weighs most heavily on these dreams. The newly engaged Jane isn't
dreaming of happily ever after here but of being abandoned and alone—with the added
responsibility of motherhood—once again in her life. After the wedding fiasco and Jane's
departure, she dreams of Rochester from time to time, but these dreams are more hopeful.
Seeing herself in his arms, "the hope of passing a lifetime at his side, would be renewed, with
all its first force and fire."
Moonlight: Moonlight often signals a change is about to take place in Jane's life. Jane dresses
by the light of a half-moon just before leaving Gateshead. Moonlight carries her to Helen
Burns's room on the night she dies. Jane, out for a walk, watches the moon shining on a
village just before she meets Rochester. The moon shines the night Rochester proposes to her
and again the night before their interrupted wedding. The night St. John pressures her to
marry him, moonlight fills the room just before she hears Rochester's voice. While the moon
does not always bode well for Jane, when it appears, her life is about to change.